Minnesota House of Representatives
Legal Services Advocacy ProjectMid-Minnesota Legal Aid2324 University Avenue, Suite 101St. Paul, MN 55114651-842-6909June 13, 2020The Honorable Carlos MarianiChairPublic Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy DivisionMinnesota House of Representatives381 State Office BuildingSt. Paul, MN 55155Re:The Reforming Accountability Act (HF 1)The Reimagining Public Safety Act Presentation (HF 2)The Reclaiming Community Oversight Act (HF 3)Dear Chairman Mariani:Legal Aid’s mission is to advocate for the legal rights of our clients so they may enjoy safe, healthy, and independent lives in strong communities, free of racial, social, and economic injustice. The murder of George Floyd has exposed the racial inequities we see in our work every day. It is a heart-wrenchingly tragic example of the systemic denial of basic human rights for those with less access to resources. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the already unacceptable racial and economic inequities that are belatedly the prime subjects of state and national debate.While Legal Aid provides civil legal services to income eligible clients and all elder clients and clients with disabilities, the intersection between Legal Aid’s work and the bills you have authored that are under consideration today in the House Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy Division is manifest. That is why we write to express our support for your efforts and that of your legislative colleagues to address these structural inequities, improve public safety, and improve relations between police officers and the communities they serve. Our clients live and often struggle in those communities.Several of the provisions in the Reforming Accountability Act (HF 1), the Reimagining Public Safety Act Presentation (HF 2), and the Reclaiming Community Oversight Act (HF 3) address problems that directly impact the personal safety and economic well-being of the clients and communities we serve. First, we applaud the proposal to reform the cash bail system, found in section 8 of HF 1.The Honorable Carlos MarianiChair, Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy DivisionPage 2Economic fairness and justice dictate that public systems should not distinguish rights and outcomes based on income or the color of your skin. Yet, “[e]very day in this country, hundreds of thousands of legally innocent people sit behind bars simply because they cannot afford bail.” Further, the “burden of cash bail falls disproportionately on communities of color.” The economic consequences of this inequitable treatment of certain persons -- disproportionately persons of color -- touching the criminal justice system exacerbates their ability to maintain jobs and income and makes an already economically rocky road even more difficult. Removing the economic burdens and disparities inherent in this system can help improve the ability of clients and their families caught in this system to maintain some semblance of economic stability.Second, Sections 8, 9, and 10 of HF 2 in particular would provide great benefit to our clients with disabilities. The Minnesota Disability Law Center (MDLC) – a statewide program of Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid -- is the designated Protection and Advocacy System for Minnesota and addresses the unique legal needs of Minnesotans with disabilities. MDLC provides free civil legal assistance to individuals with disabilities statewide, regardless of age or income, on legal issues related to their disabilities. Our clients include those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and mental health issues. Specifically, we were pleased to see the inclusion of the provision contained in these sections of HF 2 that seek to ensure safer interactions between peace officers and persons with autism, and the provisions that support peace officer crisis intervention and mental crisis intervention training and police and mental health crisis team collaboration.In sum, at this transformational moment in the history of our state and our nation, Legal Aid offers its expertise and support for all the efforts now underway, and those to come, to dismantle the structural racism, injustice, and inequity in our society that impede the ability of our low-income clients and communities of color to meet their basic needs and to have their basic human rights respected.Sincerely,Ron ElwoodSupervising Attorney ................
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